Speedway fans urge Coventry Brandon Stadium rethink

Speedway fans are urging councillors in Rugby to reject plans to turn a stadium into a housing estate.

The Coventry Bees stopped racing at Brandon Stadium in 2016 after failing to reach a deal to race there.

The site is currently derelict and councillors will consider later a planning application for 124 homes.

However, speedway rider Francesca Wright said losing the stadium would be "incredibly sad".

"My family's been going to Brandon for three generations," the 32-year-old said.

"To lose a track that I remember going to as a kid, my dad remembers going to as a kid, now being pregnant and knowing I'm not going to be able to have that experience with my own child."

Ms Wright now lives in Worcestershire, but grew up around Coventry and said her introduction to speedway was at Brandon, adding it was amazing to race at a stadium where she had watched riders compete since she was a child.

Francesca now lives in Worcestershire and competed for the Eastbourne Seagulls last year

Francesca said she had been prompted to try speedway after her sister recommended it

Plans to redevelop the stadium and the wider area date back several years.

The latest application going before Rugby Borough Council has been recommended for approval and features a football pitch and clubhouse as well as homes.

Scott Nicholls, who captained the Bees to five trophies in three seasons between 2004 and 2007, told BBC CWR the stadium should be retained within the wider redevelopment.

He added Brandon's demise had been "another nail in the coffin" of speedway, which has seen other tracks close in recent years.